When we reviewed the Steel Porcupine from Roma Craft last year, this is what we said about this particular series of cigars:
The CRAFT Maquette series began two years ago as a way for RoMa Craft Tobac to showcase some limited blends and give their loyal fanbase a firsthand look at some creations that fall outside the company’s core lines.
I’ll assume that origin story is still correct and you should too. I’m almost always right about these things some times. That particular cigar was spectacular and ended up as our #4 Cigar of 2025. So the bar has been set high for tonight’s review of the latest CRAFT Maquette offering. No pressure…
THE CIGAR – CRAFT MAQUETTE EL MARINERO by ROMA CRAFT TOBAC
Size: 4 3/4 x 54 (box-pressed gran robusto)
Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés
Binder: Nicaraguan Ometepe
Filler: La Canela, Dominican Republic (corojo) / Condega, Estelí, and Jalapa regions of Nicaragua (criollos)
Price: $13.00 (head over to Famous Smoke Shop and use promo code TNCC20 to receive $20 off your purchase of $100 or more!)
The unlit El Marinero features a strong earthy aroma and there’s golden honey detected when sniffing the foot of the cigar directly. I won’t go so far as to identify it as local honey… but it definitely came from somewhere. After an effortless punch to the cap, the cold draw is earthy as well with the inclusion of some unsweetened ice tea.
Upon ignition, crackling black pepper stands out immediately via the retrohale. It’s potent. Earth and oak are the draw’s primary notes here initially. The El Marinero is a smokeshow with chewy blue/grey smoke pouring out from both ends. Back to the retro, that crisp black pepper lingers long on the finish and it’s so clearly-defined that the more vague woodsy and earthy notes found down below can only serve to humbly accent it.
El Marinero’s construction thus far has been flawless with a smooth draw and very respectable burn line (construction on all 4 samples smoked was excellent). As the cigar approaches the middle section, the pepper downshifts slightly which allows the introduction of a cedar component to the retro. The combination of dominating pepper, cedar, and the insanely copious smoke production reminds me a lot of the Maestranza Caballería Valencia which we reviewed last year. So be a fucking man and blow lots of smoke out your nose with this cigar. No more excuses, just do it. I’ll wait…
Sometimes I feel like I retrohale too often and, perhaps, I’m shortchanging the blender’s intent as far as the draw is concerned. I retro after almost every puff unless I consciously tell myself not to. Am I standing alone on this nose-tingling island?
I make the hard decision to thump off the sturdy ash of the El Marinero right around the fifty yard line before somebody gets hurt. The second half holds steady with the effortless delivery of pepper, cedar, and oak. The earthiness has slowly vanished from the profile, replaced by barely discernible note of must. The cigar maintains that combination of flavors until the nonbitter end.
As a highly-respected professional cigar reviewer, I would be highly negligent if I didn’t ponder possible beverage pairings for the El Marinero. This particular round of pondering doesn’t take long – PRVA, Yebiga’s barrel-aged Serbian rakija, would pair absolutely amazing with the El Marinero. The PRVA is almost electric on the front end, which would match the energy of the cigar, and then there’s a mild, velvety vanilla and soft plum fruit sweetness on the brandy’s finish that would compliment and not compete at all with the El Marinero’s flavors. Warning: PRVA is scary easy to drink, super scary…
THE NUB
TNCC Final Score = 92
I enjoyed the CRAFT Maquette El Marinero quite a bit, even without the delicious rakija. While I still prefer the overall profile of the Maestranza Caballería Valencia more, El Marinero is absolutely worthy of 60 minutes of your sacred time. If you’re a fan of peppery, balanced, well-constructed cigars I think you’ll dig it.
